Content Structuring
Structuring lesson content in order to help students organize key concepts and related details is a crucial element in a student’s learning process. The use of graphic organizers is one way to help facilitate this learning process. Graphic organizers are visual representations of ideas, information, statistics, and/or knowledge. Venn diagrams, concept maps, network trees, and sequential maps are a few examples of graphic organizers. Using graphic organizers aid students in organizing, arranging, and categorizing complex information into manageable components.
According to Gary D. Borich, “An advance organizer [graphic organizer] gives learners a conceptual preview of what is to come and helps prepare them to store, label, and package the content for retention and later use.” (2007, p. 271). Extensive research suggests that the use of graphic organizers make the learning process easier to comprehend for all learners. Borich states, “Advance organizers have been found especially helpful for students from diverse culture and English-language learners…” (2007, p. 271).
Organizing and introducing a graphic organizer for class use involves preparation. As an educator, it is imperative to organize and comprehend the concepts to be taught to the students. Once the information is gathered and understood, a specific learning objective can be formed.
The learning objective is presented to the students in a clear and concise manner. Presenting the students with an example of the graphic organizer, help the students visualize and organized the objective to be learned. This informs the students exactly what will be covered in the day’s lesson. Stating the learning objective also activates a student’s prior knowledge and experiences as well.
Once the students are aware of the learning objective, examples can be elaborated on through class discussion. Asking the students low-level questions help students relate...